the longest period your film left unexposed inside your camera

[winoto]

As a camera collector and photographer, I often find myself cycling through my horde of cameras in turns, depending on types of photograps I am after. Sometimes I have as many as 4 to 5 cameras loaded with film. Today, I had decided to use my Plaubel Makina 67 which had been sitting neatly on the shelf for awhile only to find 4 frames remaining from a roll which I had neglected and forgotten. After finishing the roll, I've found that it had been from our last holiday in Japan almost 6 months ago!!! It was a pleasant surprise and took me back to our trip which we enjoyed thoroughly. Does anyone have this problem?? What was the longest idle time for your forgotten roll(s)?

I've also often find rolls left in vintage cameras bought from estates and ebay and wonder the age of the film. I've developed a few out of curiosity to find some interesting pics of the subjects of its previous owners...

 

[Avotius]

the longest I have had a roll in a camera is about a year, in fact I developed that roll a few minutes ago figuring I should just finish it off. I dont know where I took the pictures on it but its been in there for a while, in fact I didnt even remember what film was in the camera, turned out to be era 100 being shot at 400.

I once bought a kodak 3a pocket camera that had a veri old roll of verichrome 122 in it.

 

[RML]

Not my camera but my mother's: several years. 😛

 

[jmilkins]

An olympus trip 35 (I think) that had a roll of film in it taken by my parents in around 1973 , developed in 2003 in modern fuji chemicals. Very odd to see me as a 3 year old with a classic old tv in the background, but printed on modern fuji paper....

 

[oscroft]

I've still got a disposable camera with exposed film in it from about 15 years ago - I really must finish the roll.

 

[css9450]

Very odd to see me as a 3 year old with a classic old tv in the background, but printed on modern fuji paper....

I have a similar story involving old movie film.

Back in the early-90s, my parents pulled out their old Keystone movie camera that had been in the drawer for a number of years, and lo and behold there was a fully exposed roll of film in it. After some urging, they turned it in for processing, and the results show my brother and myself as toddlers playing in a park along Cincinnati's riverfront. Includes a couple shots of riverboats and the sparkling brand-new Riverfront Stadium (since demolished). I'm figuring it was shot in 1970.

Colors were a little faded, however.

 

[dryice66]

About 8 years in the late 90s. Interesting to see pictures of my first marriage! Colours not as sharp as they could be.

 

[BJ Bignell]

I have a couple right now that are at the 20-month mark; and I found my old 110 camera in storage last autumn with unexposed film still in it, which means about 12 years...

 

[lubitel]

i have a film in my holga since september, and in lubitel even longer. I once developed a film from a folder that I got from my father in law and its been in there since 1963!!! the fotos came out okay. it was great. like time travel.

 

[kaiser48]

Last Christmas my father gave me his old Zeiss Ikon folder with roll-film back. I got four good pictures from it from the film inside. They were of a family outing in a car that dad sold in 1964. It was some kind of Kodak film that had been in the camera for at least 43 years.

Wonder if the same thing will happen with digital ....

 

[ibcrewin]

I found a roll at the bottom of my backpack. It was from a little point and shoot that fell into the colorado river on a trip to the grand canyon. That was eight years ago. I developed it and it was all messed up. I think it was the roll that fell in the drink.

besides that. My problem is having exposed rolls out of the camera!

 

[gb hill]

In my slr I have left film in it for over a year because I just don't use the camera that much. I have giving it a fair work out lately. I loaded it with some old Konica asa 200 color film from 2001, to photograph the birds in my backyard. Setting up the old tripod & using a 400mm lens with cable release, I'd forgotten how much fun that was. Anyhow the photos came out nice. I was suprised at the color of this film. I also have in my slr bag a couple of cartrages from bulk rolls I loaded of 125 asa B&W film from over 20 years ago. That ought to be exciting to shoot & devolop.

 

[sepiareverb]

I usually manage to get through film pretty quick in my cameras- the Rollei P&S in the kitchen drawer does seem to swallow film for a while. Last roll had pictures of the dog we buried last march, a birthday party long past and images from a fall hike about 1 1/2 years ago. It was reloaded and is currently on frame 5 or 6. Culprits are the Nikon digital P&S that my wife and kids prefer, and me, for I more often will pull out the Contax G2 loaded with Kodachrome for my 'snaps' (It is the spring- when it gets here- and summer and fall of kodachrome around these parts)

Bonus is the fun factor in trying to remember 'when the heck that was' or 'you actually did that to your hair' moments on the finished roll.

Had a student pick up a Yashica TLR at a flea market with a roll of Tri-X in it. I guessed it to be of early 80's vintage from the paper. We tried to run it but the camera had been opened a few times it seemed- one partial exposure at the start of the roll- then some black and some blank. She'll be printing this weekend.

 

[Lemures-Ex]

Not in a camera, but I have a 25 pack of Kodak Panchro-Press 4x5 from the mid '50's and a 100 pack of GAF Gafstar something-or-other from '74, also 4x5. Found em in the attic of a camera store I worked for. Once I can afford to get back into large format there will be some serious experimenting going on...

In the camera, probably a couple months at most. No noticeable shifts at that age.

Jared

 

[dostacos]

well, IF I take a look at my Pentax SLRs I will find some half shot rolls [2-3 rolls at least😱 ]

I just found a roll of shot color film [don't remember when I shot color last 😱 😱 ]

got about 1/2 a roll in my R and another 1/2 roll in my L.

I pulled out the first roll in my R4M [B&W 3 shots burned ALL from playing with the camera and lever winder, NONE savable] and just shot 36 color pics of the fronts of the houses in my area. We are looking for ideas for our remodel. R4M and the 35MM 1.2 with the leverwinder that was FUNNNNNNN😀

 

[amateriat]

The longest period I think I've left a roll in any camera was probably three to four months. These days, it's two to three weeks at most. As most of the color I shoot is negative, and with processing just a few blocks away, I have little excuse to leave film laying about in-camera. On the other hand, i do have a new backlog of conventional b/w awaiting my attention...


- Barrett

 

[Covich]

Just bought an argus C-3, and found a roll of Kodachrome in it.

It may well be very old, but i don't really know.

 

[itf]

Not in my camera, but the first a roll of film I took is somewhere back home in Australia unprocessed. It's the format that comes in a cassette looking like this o__o and I exposed it when I was 4, now I'm 24 and can still remember taking some of those photos. I'd really like to find it when I eventually go home and see if processing would reveal anything.

 

[amateriat]

Just bought an argus C-3, and found a roll of Kodachrome in it.

It may well be very old, but i don't really know.

If, somehow, that K'chrome roll happens to be K-14 process (it'll say so on the roll), you're in luck; if it's the previous K-12 process, you'll have more of a time getting it developed, but not absolutely impossible. If it's older than that, well, that's a problem.

K-14: Kodachrome 25, 64

K-12: Kodachrome II, X(?)

Good luck.


- Barrett